Mikel Arteta has revealed how he felt when Arsenal’s miraculous defensive run came to an end against Sunderland.
Arsenal matched an astonishing 122-year-old club record against Slavia Prague on Tuesday, winning eight matches in a row without conceding for the first time since 1903.
Three minutes into their clash on Wearside, the Gunners passed the 13 hour mark without letting an opponent find the back of their net.
However, this was brought to an emphatic end when Dan Ballard thumped the ball past David Raya in the 36th minute at the Stadium of Light.
How Mikel Arteta reacted to conceding against Sunderland
Arsenal are now favourites to win the Premier League title, and this is largely a result of their imperious defensive stability.
The Gunners have conceded just five goals in 17 matches across all competitions, although they showed a few signs of fragility at the back against the Black Cats.
Failing to deal with a long ball punted forward by Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs, Declan Rice and Gabriel Magalhaes demonstrated unusually passive defensive behaviour, allowing Ballard to fire home nine minutes before the break.
This was the first goal Arsenal had conceded in nine games, and they would’ve been forgiven for letting this setback impact them.
Arteta praised his team’s mental resilience to come from behind, despite dropping points in the end. However, the manager wasn’t best pleased in his post-match press conference about conceding the opening goal, claiming it left a ‘pain’ in his stomach.
“A pain in my tummy, because I didn’t want to concede any goals,” he said.
“And it was a goal, obviously, that was putting the game in a difficult position.
“Yeah, of course it hurts, especially when it costs you points. And we know that we have to do better. And even though we’re conceding goals, there are things that we have to improve and evolve. I always mention that. And that’s it. Learn from the past and get back.”
Arsenal deserved all three points against Sunderland
This was a disappointing result for the Gunners, but they arguably deserved all three points.
Sunderland sat deep and defended their own box effectively, frustrating Arsenal for long periods, particularly in the first half.
| Sunderland 2-2 Arsenal Statistics | ||
| 35% | Possession | 65% |
| 6 | Shots | 17 |
| 2 | Shots on target | 7 |
| 0.44 | Expected Goals | 2.06 |
| 2 | Big Chances | 4 |
However, as shown by the data above, the away side created the majority of the threat during the match. They accumulated more expected goals, had eleven more shots and dominated possession.
On another day, the result goes in Arsenal’s favour, and nobody bats an eyelid. This may arguably make the result even more frustrating for Arteta.
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